Welcome to the new staff in the Department of Chemistry!
Andrea Gallagher, Grants Specialist
Started February 2023
Andrea has been with UW for five years at UW Bothell, UW Tacoma, and most recently in the Department of Medicine, Allergy and Infectious Diseases (AID). Andrea has extensive experience with both pre-award and post-award grant management of NIH and NSF awards, and has worked on a variety of other government awards; she really enjoys the pre-award process. Andrea is from Ohio and earned a B.A. from the University of Dayton. Prior to the UW, she worked in IT project management for many years. Andrea lives in Renton with her daughter and husband and enjoys golfing, reading, and Ohio State football.
Brenda Li ‘19, IMOD Operations Manager
Started March 2023
Brenda graduated from the UW in 2019 with a B.S. in biology. After graduating, she served Seattle by working as an EMT and medical assistant in the clinical setting. She is pleased to be back at the UW as IMOD’s operation manager.
Daria Kakorin ’22, Scientific Instructional Technician 2
Started March 2023
Daria supports upper division chemistry lab courses. After graduating from the UW with a B.S. in chemistry, she managed physical evidence at a digital forensics company. A year later, Daria is returning to lab work to pursue her career goals and is excited to help support the department and students! Daria is a big fan of books, video games, chess, and music.
Katie Nowlin ‘12, Grant & Finance Manager
Started May 2023
Katie leads the branch of our finance team that provides post-award support to faculty and oversees department funds. Katie completed her M.A. in art history at Temple University in Philadelphia after receiving her undergraduate degree from the UW. She worked as a development associate with the Holocaust Center for Humanity before joining the UW School of Medicine in 2015. Over the last several years, she has held positions in academic HR, graduate program administration, and grants management. When not working, she buys too many books at her neighborhood shop, listens to records while drinking copious amounts of coffee, and hangs out with her super cute dog.
Eddie Melton, Seminar & Event Coordinator
Started August 2023
Eddie (they/them) will support our academic seminars as the point person for managing the visits of external speakers/lecturers. Eddie is a Seattle area native who attended the University of Washington, both in Bothell and Seattle. They have studied many subjects from web design to Germanics, and in their spare time they enjoy sewing, performing arts, and playing Dungeons and Dragons with their friends.
Tyler Robison ‘18, Grants Specialist
Started August 2023
Tyler earned his bachelor's in chemistry from Michigan State University in 2017 and a master's in chemistry from UW in 2018. He then joined our Undergraduate Services team, primarily supporting the organic teaching labs. Most recently Tyler worked as a research chemist at the startup Sironix Renewables. He is excited to rejoin the Department to support the pre-award grants team. Tyler enjoys taking care of his five pet rats and taking walks around Green Lake.
Mimi Fairchild, Budget/Fiscal Analyst
Started October 2023
Mimi is joining our Finance team working with Katie Nowlin supporting the Department’s post-award fiscal operations for both grants and department budgets. She brings with her an eclectic mix of experiences from the finance, insurance, and wireless industries. Mimi’s family just adopted a Russell Terrier named Fritz and cannot wait to help him feel at home with his new clan.
Adrian Lee ‘19
Started October 2023
Adrian joined our purchasing team as a fiscal specialist working with Loch Hickok. Adrian graduated from the UW with a degree in Business Administration. He previously worked at UW in the Department of Radiology and is excited to serve the Department of Chemistry. In his free time, Adrian likes to game with friends, work on cars and eat copious amounts of cheese.
We are so pleased to have these additions to our Finance, Administration, STC, and Instructional teams.
We are also delighted to announce the promotions of the following staff:
Fran Wedge, promoted to Budget Fiscal Analyst in May 2023.
Patrick Arroyo, promoted to Fiscal Specialist 2 in May 2023.
Brandon Bol, promoted to Analytical Instrumentation Specialist in January 2023. Brandon is a graduate of Western Washington University and has been in the Department of Chemistry for the past 4.5 years as a Scientific Instructional Technician for our Undergraduate Services. He hopes to be the same helpful and friendly face you’ve come to know in his new role working with Martin Sadilek in the mass spec facility.
We wish the best to a few staff members who left the Department of Chemistry:
Cassie Davis, Seminar & Event Coordinator, is now an academic adviser in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering.
Alastair Laing, Research Coordinator, started law school!
Anna Randall, Fiscal Specialist, is now at Seattle Children’s.
Congratulations to our colleagues who have reached milestone work anniversaries at the UW in early 2023:
5 years: Hakme Lee, Scientific Instructional Technician 2. (We also recognize Hakme for taking on an expanded role by serving as the chemical safety officer for the Department. Thank you, Hakme!)
10 years: Adrienne Roehrich, NMR Services Associate Manager
15 years: Lynsey Tafreshi, Director of Personnel, and Jim Earnshaw, Senior Computer Specialist
30 years! Richard Ketcham, Computer Engineer
The staff in the Department of Chemistry continue to be dedicated to our mission of inclusive excellence in learning, teaching, research, and community service with the highest standards of safety.